Railroad-rail straightener



April 1, 1930. c. D. BALDWIN RAILROAD RAIL STRAIGHTENER Filed July 16, 1928 INVENTOR %W&

A TTORNEY,

Patented Apr. 1, 1930 UNITED STATES.

CLARENCE D. BALDWIN, F BELLINGHA M, WASHINGTON RAILROAD-RAIL STRAIGHTENER Application filed July 16, 1928. Serial-No. 293,208.

My invention relates to improvements in railroad rail straighteners, more specially designed to remove downward curves from the rails of logging roads usually caused by logs falling thereon, and has for an object to provide a screw press suitable for straightening such curves in rails while they are in place in the road.

Another object of my improvement is to provide a press for the stated purpose having attachments suited to retain it in proper operative position when under operative strains.

Another object of my improvement is to provide a press for the stated purpose which is of strong and simple construction and easy to set up in place and remove.

Other objects of my improvement will appear as the description proceeds.

I attain these and other objects of my improvement with the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying sheet of drawings in which Figure 1 is a plan view of my rail straightener in place on a rail either ready for operation or for removal following completion of its work, Fig. 2 is an end elevation of Fig. 1 part of which is in section on a medial vertical plane, and Fig. 3 is a side elevation of Fig. 1 drawn on a smaller scale.

Similar characters refer to similar parts throughout.

With more particular reference to the designated parts: 4 and 5 are track rails and on rail 4 my press has been set in operative position. Press nut 6 has downwardly projected arms 7, 7 preferably lntegral therewith, in the lower ends of which are bolt holes. Bottom plate 8 is placed beneath the track rail to bear on the bottom thereof and has central notches in the ends thereof to re ceive the lower ends of arms 7, 7 Holes through plate 8 register with said holes through arms 7 and pin 9 and rivet 10 are extended therethrough to engage plate 8 with nut 6. Press screw 11 is engaged in nut 6 disposed with its axis vertical and central over rail 4. Shank 12 of the screw is of smaller diameter and is mounted for revolution in beam bearing 16. On the upper end 50 of shank 12 turret head 13 is welded to bear on the upper end of bearing16. Bar holes 14 and 15 are provided in head 13 preferably on parallel diameters.

Curvedbeam 17 has bearing 16 centrally disposed and integral therewith and end blocks 18, 18 to bear on the rail head. Said blocks have lugs 19 on their sides projected down to engage said blocks with the rail head.

Bearing 16 has ears 20, 20 projecting from its inner side to receive one end of strut 21 so and registering holes through said ears and strut provide for the extension of pin 22 therethrough to engage the strut with beam 17. The other end of the strut has foot plate 23 to bear against the inner side of rail 65 head 5 and toe 24 thereon engages with the lower wall of said rail head. Clamp plate 25 bears against the outer wall of rail head 5 and has toe 26 to bear on the lower wall thereof for engagement therewith. Through alignedholes. in foot 23 and plate 25 bolt 27 is extended and a nut thereon loosely clamps the lower end of strut 21 in engagement with the headof rail 5. The length of strut 21provides for the vertical disposal of the press on rail 4 and, together with Ybottomplate Sand beam blocks 18, 18, maintains the press in an approximate vertical position on the rail during operation.

Hand bars are placedin holes 14 and 15 so to each protrude oppositely from said head. The efforts of men pushing on both of these bars simultaneously will, in some measure, be balanced as to lateral strains on the jack which will be maintained in its position in 8 5 the vertical more easily than if holes 14 and 15 were relatively disposed at right angles as usual.

In case rail is bent downward beneath jack screw 11, revolving the screw to cause 9 it to pass downward in nut 6 will pull rail 4 upward between beam blocks 18, 18. This revolution of the screw is effected by operatives pushing on bars inserted in holes 14 and 15 as stated. In using my jack, when the downward curve in the rail is short and deep,

I prefer to heat the rail with torch flames and maintain it considerably above normal temperature during the strain thereon by the jack. If the curve is longer and not deep 2 the straightening may be done when the rail is cold without injury thereto.

To dismount the press, pin 9 is withdrawn, bolt 27 is loosened to free the lower end of the strut from rail 5 and pin 22 is withdrawn, when the press may be disengaged from rail 4 b lifting it away therefrom.

'l o engage the press with the rail, with pin 9 withdrawn, the inner end of plate 8 is presented to the outside of the rail while the press is leaning diagonally outward fromthe rail and as the press is pushed forward plate 8 ma pass beneath the rail and be in position or engagement with inner arm 7 when beam blocks 18 are mounted on the rail head. Pin 9 is then inserted and strut 21 is ivoted to ears 20 and clamped to rail 5 w en the straightener is again in operative position.

Having thus disclosed in invention, what I claim as new therein and esire to secure by Letters Patent is,

In a rail straightening machine, a curved Egress beam the ends of which are grooved to ar on and engage with the head of one of the tracks of a railroad, a bearing centrally disposed in said curved beam with its axis in the plane thereof, a press nut, two arms integral with said press nut disposed on opposite sides of said track rail having openings in the ends thereof, a plate to bear on the bottom of said track rail having openings therethrough to register with said openings in the ends of said arms, pins extended through said registering openings to engage said plate with said arms, a press screw engaged with said press nut having a cylindrical shank to mount for rotation in said beam bearing, a turret head of larger diameter than said screw shank fastened on the end thereof to bear on the outer end of said beam bearing, and a strut pivotally connectedwith the walls of said beam bearing and releasably fastened to the head of the other rail of said track.

CLARENCE 1). BALDWIN. 

